To Save a Princess
by vanearte
Summary: Leo died fighting Gaia. But what about his promise?


Percy couldn't help but think of the irony. Leo, the burning boy, had burned in the fires of his own creation.

It made him cry.

Sure, Leo had never been his best friend. They hadn't gotten along famously on the Argo II. He hadn't been as close as Jason, or Frank, or Hazel, or Annabeth, or even Piper.

Sure, Percy had always sort of blamed Leo for what happened in New Rome, although they all knew that it wasn't his fault. But they had been so close to peace, and it had only taken a spirit inside of a boy inside of a warship to end it all.

Sure, Leo could be a little annoying, but he didn't deserve what he got. Not by a long shot.

Bits of metal had rained from the sky. The burning boy had turned to dust and ash. When Jason and Piper got down, they were crying.

And then Hazel was crying.

And then Frank was crying.

And then Annabeth was crying.

And Percy tried to stay strong, but he was crying, too.

Later, they came back to the crash site and picked up the pieces. Festus's ruby eyes, part of a bronze dragon tooth, scraps of charred denim, and...

Percy bent down. There, underneath the ash, was an astrolabe. He picked it up. It looked as if it had been polished only recently, which was't strange. Leo took really good care of everything- or, at least, he had. But every part of Festus had been broken or charred during the explosion. The astrolabe was in perfect condition.

But it was the crystal at the center of the astrolabe that really caught Percy's attention. He had seen it- or, at least, something very much like it -before. But where?

"Whatcha got there, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth tried to sound cheerful, but Percy could see right through her.

"It's nothing. Just an astrolabe."

Annabeth saw right through him, too.

"If it were just and astrolabe," she said, "you wouldn't be staring at it like that. What is it?"

"I don't know," Percy replied, "I just could've sworn that I'd seen that crystal before."

Annabeth gave him a kiss on the cheek, and Percy returned to his cabin. He wasn't in the mood for a campfire; he doubted that any of his friends were, either. He fell asleep with the astrolabe clutched to his chest.

That night, Percy dreamt of flowers. In the morning, he knew why.

Percy told Annabeth first. She wasn't happy, and it wasn't hard to see why. Calypso had cursed her, which would put a major dent in anyone's relationship. And when Percy said that he had to go alone, she was even more upset.

"Why won't you let me go with you?"

"Why would you need to?" Percy said, "This is just something that I need to do alone. Don't you trust me?"

Annabeth was silent for a moment.

"I trust you, Percy, I do," she said, finally, "But after everything that's happened, I just want you with me. I want you to stop with the adventures."

"And I will stop," Percy hugged Annabeth to his chest and kissed her forehead, "As soon as I'm back, Wise Girl, we'll stop with the adventures. But I can't leave Calypso to spend the rest of eternity on that tiny island."

Annabeth closed her eyes and sighed.

By sunrise, Percy was ready to go. He had a small boat- a gift from his father -and it was set to sail. He kissed Annabeth, said goodbye to his friends, and began his last quest.

At first, it had been very difficult. Percy's brain kept jumping back to longitude and latitude, and he had to make a conscious effort to pay attention to nothing but the astrolabe. Ogygia was in the middle of nowhere; it didn't _have_ coordinates. The more time passed, the more illogical the coordinates became. He was getting close.

By nightfall, Percy was on Ogygia's sandy shores. It was just as he remembered it.

Calypso must have sensed someone on the beach, because soon enough she came running across the sand.

"Leo-" she yelled, and then stopped.

Percy chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "Guess I'm not really what you were expecting, huh?"

"No! That's not- I mean... How did you get here?"

Percy couldn't meet her eyes.

Sitting in the sand under the stars, they talked.

And then Calypso was crying.

And Percy tried to stay strong, but he was crying, too.

Calypso packed her things.

The boat ride back to Camp Half-Blood was completely and utterly silent.


End file.
